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tv   BBC World News America  PBS  January 28, 2013 2:30pm-3:00pm PST

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we are reporting from washington. where were the sprinklers and fire extinguishers? 230 people killed in a nightclub fire. the ancient city of timbuktu is seized by french but not before islamist rebels destroyed historic manuscripts. >> it is a truth universally acknowledged that jane austen's "pride and prejudice" is an excellent novel. we celebrate its 200th birthday. welcome to our viewers on public television in america and around the globe. the nightclub was called kiss
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but was a death trap. a killed more than to wonder 30 people and is a tragedy for the whole nation. most of the victims were teenagers started a new year at the local university. three people have been arrested. authorities claim there was only one emergency exit at the nightclub. our brazil correspondent has sent us this report. >> brazil has begun to bury its dead. it does span five decades since this country face a loss on the scale. those who died were young and a sense of so many futures away at only intensified the suffering. among the dead were two brothers and two sisters, boyfriends and girlfriends. investigators are still trying to piece together the events of the kiss nightclub that led to so many deaths. witnesses tell of a flair being let as the band played on stage. flames quickly spread across the
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ceiling and heavy, toxic smoke. >> outstanding with my friends when the music starts. my friends started shouting "run, run." is when the confusion started. >> doesn't died in the bathroom area, mistaking a door for an exit. they told a security guard that many of the young people still have to play for their drinks. >> it is hard to get out. in a matter of seconds. i only stayed there for a few seconds. it felt like an eternity. >> the bodies of those who died were taken to a gymnasium converted into a temporary mortuary where relatives have their worst fears concerned. >> i lost my son. he was full of life. he was only 27 years old. it is so sad. >> inside this nightclub
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investigators the to find out why the number of dead was so high. and who was to blame for starting the tragic sequence of events and what safety failings made it worse. no one more than these families want answers to those questions. there will be time for that later. for the relatives gathered here, and this was a day to mourn their loss. gary duffy, abc news. >> if we can go live now to the town of santa maria and speak to julia. thank you for joining me. what more do we know about the investigation and what the police are looking at? >> here in santa maria there is some developments in the case today. the police have arrested four people. they were detained for questioning. they are verifying all the information, trying to find out what really happened, looking into the allegations that the
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band members would have ignited, fireworks, and this was the reason for the fire to begin. this was a very grim day. a lot of burials were happening. yesterday was the day when all of the bodies were removed from the scene and brought to this temporary morgue that was made. i was at a cemetery earlier today. it was painful for the families. everyone is trying to cope with that fact. the city is deeply affected. >> to under 30 people -- 230 l's deadliest fireadie in half a century. do know anything about the sprinklers, fire extinguishers? >> this is part of the police investigation.
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one of the most common reaction here is that people now are looking into why a all this and negligence allowed for this to happen. people not only in santa maria but other parts of brazil will be asking more about safety measures and safety procedures and venues like this, especially now that brazil has all the eyes of the world upon itself now that it will host the world cup and the olympics. the residents here want to see these questions answered. did they want to see something come out of this. there is a lot of anger. there's a lot of sadness among the people. everyone seems to be impacted. it is not a large city. everyone knew someone or loss someone close. it is certainly going to be a trauma for the city. it will mark its history for a very long time.
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>> julia carneiro there. a summary of the people were very young. when french troops made their nighttime entry into the fabled city of timbuktu, they did not find any rebels to fight. they seemed to disappear. before they left they did set fire to a library that hold some of the most valuable ancient manuscripts in the world. thomas sent us this report. >> it was an overnight raid, lights off, a french helicopters leading the way for soldiers to the northern entrance of the city. paratroopers quickly deployed around the town while armored vehicles were positioning on the southern side, blocking always in or out. the airport was quickly secured. french shoulders moved into town without firing a single shot. >> this town is now secure.
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we are not sure that there was not this. >> he was scared from further destruction. the french led forces continue to switch with mind. >> the french had not encountered any resistance. the fear that some elements is still hiding in town. french led forces have conducted a rocket advance. it melted when the desert and chasing them down into this region will be much more difficult. >> resident erupted with joy when they discovered french and malian troops enjoying the town. the battle is not over. the hottest -- jihadists are
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still around. >> no. mali is still under the control of terrorists. it is up to the africans to restore its integrity. >> american forces are slowly deploying to mali. not only half of the 7000 troops promise are in the country. france may well find itself on the frontline of this operation for a long time to come. bbc news, timbuktu. >> french troops only took on the islamist rebels two weeks ago. in afghanistan, they have been battling the taliban for more than a decade now. nato troops are starting to withdraw. what kind of country are they leaving behind? we're in afghanistan and he sent
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us this report. >> the afghan capital of kabul is a bustling city. 100,000 troops are anywhere to be seen. they're starting to leave. he tells me afghanistan is a different place from when they arrived 11 years ago. it is remarkable how things have progressed. health care is very different to what it was. education has moved on hugely. i think in terms of the progress to the things we would understand, and there has been a momentum. it has progressed to an extraordinary way. >> the taliban had not gone away. soon afghan security forces will have to fight them on their own. the man who led the intelligence war for most of the last 10
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years said the attacks are set to get worse. >> it reduces this. the taliban are going to change their tactics. they are going to modify their strategy. there are going to do more and more spectacular attacks. >> like this one on our first morning in cobble, a triple suicide bombing. officials told us on average there are four such attacks for every week. we went to see what security was like. here the government is offering them money to give up guns and reintegrate themselves into village communities. it is having mixed results.
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>> the man behind me were told the problem we have is no means of knowing. even if they are, the numbers are so very small. to 6000 integrating. >> the details are registered diametrically. while we were there, at a ballmer killed 3. -- a bomber killed three. nato has fought this to a stalemate. it has not defeated it. it is leading the afghan authorities and decide to to trust in how to stop this country once again. >> look what afghanistan may look like after the nato forces withdraw.
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some other news around the world. violence in cairo is continuing for a fifth day after president marcie went. he also pose a curtsey in areas where dozens have now been killed. police fired tear gas. the cause of a series of technical problems with boeing's new dreamliner is still not known. on monday they clear the company that makes batteries for the airline. they're now focusing on equipment's that matters the batteries performance. after days of torrential rain in australia, cyclone ocelot is threatening to cut off the city in queensland from the outside world. authorities will work through the night to evacuate residents from these flooded areas. three people have died as a result of the flooding. a group of republicans and democratic senators did something unusual. they reach across party lines to
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work together. they took a proposal on immigration to do it. it would allow more educated people and to america and give the 11 million people who are here illegally a pact to citizenship. they are particularly interested in helping the so-called dreamers, children brought to america illegally by their parents. we spoke to one of them, victor from alabama about his dreams. >> i am 21 years old. i am on documented. i do not have a license. what can i do? we do not have any buses here? we do not have any metro. my mother and father drive throughout the state without a license and without a work permit. if they were ever to get pulled over that could be the last time i could see them. i have been here in birmingham
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for 14 years. i have to say goodbye to a lot of my friends. they have been deported. i love the state of alabama. when i was growing up i always questioned my parents, why they brought me here. now i really cannot imagine living anywhere else. i am at a crosswords. i have work permits. if you're undocumented you cannot get student loans, federal loans from the government. i graduated in 2010. i was accepted to universities here and in alabama bridge of georgia. i was not allowed to attend because i would be charged as an international student. it is usually three or four times the amount. i'm happy to believe what the president says. what he says is not often what he does. when was elected on could to thousand eight he said he would pack immigration.
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i felt a sense of relief because the republican candidates mitt romney really push forward an anti-immigrant agenda. i would like to president obama meet with members of the undocumented community. many of the people who want to see him succeed the most are the people he is not even aware of. >> victor speaking to us there. a problem was so many illegal americans in this country. you are watching abc world news america. still to come, it is a tale of social clubs. what makes "pride and prejudice" so popular 200 years on? queen beatrix has announced she is laying down her crown. she will abdicate in favor of her eldest son in april. >> queen beatrix reigned for 33
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years but to just three minutes to thank her loyal subjects for what she called "the beautiful years." >> is inspiring to feel close to people, it to sympathize in grievances and share times of joy and national pride. a handful of three children. in 1980 she took over from her mother to become queen of the kingdom of the netherlands. she traveled the world, making 54 in state visits. five prime ministers have come and gone during her reign. recently difficult times. in 2010 there was an attack on
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her royal convoy. last february, her son was caught in and of a lunch while on a family holiday. -- an avalanche while on a family holiday and has been any, everett since. >> is with great confidence that i will pass making shipped to my son, the prince of orange. they are fully prepared for their future task. the official abdication will take place on the queen's day. traditionally one of the most chaotic days in the dutch diary, a national holiday to celebrate the country's most cherished royal. >> there are signs.
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there are signs of recovery here in the u.s. can it last? i spoke with the new book on the financial crash to find out how optimistic we should all be. >> you call the book after the music stops. the music started again. >> it has started a bit. you wanted to restart. we had a terrible crash. some of the people that deserve to be punished work punished. all this rescue is exactly about getting the system functioning again. >> the policies enacted in 2008 started by the obama administration?
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>> they got a big helping hand. unfortunately, a lot of the politics of america think that was a horrible thing to do. he wound of shoveling money in the direction of people who certainly did not deserve it. that is what needed to be done to resurrect the system and prevent a much worse outcome. >> you are right about that in the book. the american public's perception of the policies that were enacted. do you think america is hampered by a public antipathy toward the role of government? >> generally, yes. in this particular instance, not yet. i worry about the future. there will be financial successes in the future. above there will be a need for the government to ride to the rescue. my fear is that given the bad name a lot of these programs
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have undeservedly gotten we will not have the political will to do it again. i'm pretty sure it happened next week we do not have the political will. it will not happen next week. >> why is it that five years after the financial crisis there is still a philosophical debate in america between government and less-government? why have we not decided this is what works and this is what does not? >> i do not think we will ever decide this. we are the anti-government government. you remember our origins. it was leaving the british in getting local control. anti-governmentism has always been part of the american ideologies. for the most part in the broad picture, it is more at the lip service level than at the pragmatic level.
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we worship jefferson and we follow hamilton. the government does plenty here. by european standards, we have small government in the united states. >> we will probably carry on doing so. thank you for coming in. >> thank you. it was a book that jane austen described as her own darling child. "pride and prejudice" has grown up. the past decade have seen an explosion of sequels and spinoffs. it is something she never could have imagined. our editor reports on this enduring popularity of elizabeth bennet. >> a rare, up 200 year old first edition of "pride and prejudice" a novel about five unmarried sisters with the famous opening line. >> is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man
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in possession of good fortune must be in looking for a wide. >> jane austen and recalled her book "first impressions." >> you do not wish to dance with me? >> they can be inaccurate. and could lead people to jump to conclusions based on nothing more than pride and prejudice. >> i should be very happy to dance with you. >> this is jane austen's house. she was happy and productive here. every morning to come downstairs and play the piano for a couple of hours and then she would get on with her one domestic duty, to make breakfast for her mother and for her sister. she'd been through it all away after which she would sit down at this table by the window and right. jane austen called her book "my
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own darling child." it does been adopted by several writers. >> there is the perfection about this book. it seems to be perfect. the prose is always lucid and clear. it is elegant. it is spiced with witticisms and real humor. >> producers make films based on "pride and prejudice." then there is a 1995 bbc adaptation which introduced a new generation to elizabeth bennett and mr. darcy. >> it made him be smart. i thought it has been well research.
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she would not mind in any way. >> is a love story that no matter how many times to be told, it always has the same ending. abc news. >-- bbc news. >> that is pretty high affection. we have to agree. that brings us to a close. you can continue watching this from updates around the world. it is good your local listings and you will find our channel number. from all of us here, thank you so much for watching.
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>> makes sense of international news at bbc.com/news. >> funding is made possible by vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, and union bank. >> at union bank, our relationship managers work hard to understand the industry you operate in, working to nurture new ventures and help provide capital for key, strategic solutions in a wide range of industries. what can we do for you? >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet, l
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eight senators unveiled an immigration reform plan that will offer a pass to citizenship for 11 million people living in the u.s. illegally. good evening. i'm gwen ifill. >> woodruff: and i'm judy wood rough. on the newshour tonight, we explore the details and the politics with two senators who helped craft the proposal. illinois democrat dick durbin and arizona republican jeff flake. >> ifill: then we turn to conflicts in three places around the world beginning with a renewed wave of unrest in egypt that's left more than 50 people dead. >> woodruff: from israel margaret warner reports on fears of islamic militants and chemical weapons just over the border. >> warner: with conflict raging inside syria, israel's taking no chances. it's now fortifying the security barrier behind me to guard against any dangers that may arise. >> ifill: and from mali, lindsay hilsum has a story of celebration as french and local forces push north to capture two key towns.

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